Phil Jagielka has noticed how Everton fans have changed since he left Goodison Park

Add as preferred source on Google

Everton fans are some of the most passionate in English football, and so when their support turns into disdain, things can get ugly fast.

Unfortunately for the players and staff, recent turmoil has made it so such unsavoury scenes have become far more commonplace.

Embroiled in relegation battle after relegation battle, this is a fanbase that has been put through the emotional wringer more times than most can remember.

So, the sheer fact that they continue to show up in their tens of thousands alone is admirable.

However, now speaking about the atmosphere that this nervous support creates, Phil Jagielka has provided a differentiation between how Goodison Park is now compared to when he was at the club.

Phil Jagielka rates Goodison Park atmosphere

Jagielka, now retired, enjoyed an impressive 12-year career on Merseyside, becoming something of a cult hero after amassing 385 appearances for the Toffees.

So, with this intimate knowledge of the club, he is in a pretty good position to pass comment on the state of support at the moment, and how it has altered across the last decade.

Asked about whether the tension and nervousness of the crowd affects the players by David Seaman on his podcast, Seaman Says, the former Sheffield United man replied: ‘It works both ways.

‘When you’re doing well it’s the best ever, whereas now… I play golf with scar tissue. If you get a 6-foot putt every time, and you keep missing them, you don’t want a 6-foot putt, do you? You want a 25-foot putt which you can just tap in.

‘It’s the same at home. All they want you to do is win. They’re not there in a negative way, but there’s just so much apprehension and so much nervousness, and that’s not what it was like for the majority of my time there.

‘It was an easier environment to play in, whereas now they’re tougher when things don’t go well because you can hear the moans and groans. But that’s only down to the fans wanting.’

Everton fans are terrified after the horrors of recent seasons

Although some might argue that the support for the club has arguably never been so passionate, as noted earlier, that passion can sometimes rear itself in ugly ways.

After all, a disappointing trend has begun to emerge in recent years where, if the team falls to defeat or finds themselves behind at half-time, large sections of Goodison Park boo the team.

This is unlikely to spur them onto an inspirational turnaround, and such frustration translates into mid-way through the match, when the tension can be felt rising throughout a bad performance.

This is only natural, given the relegation horrors they have been subjected to in recent campaigns, but it almost definitely does not help the players.

Surely there is some other way to inspire them on to better performances, that does not require animosity or anger.

Everton fans even booed one substitution on Saturday.

Supporters have every right to voice their displeasure towards the players, as they pay their money to attend. However, some might need a reality check of where the club is at the moment, and what they can come to expect with each passing week.

No longer are they challenging for trophies every season, or even for the top-half. This is a side that deems avoiding the drop as a success, and until the finances are sorted, that will remain the case.